Society and Environment Notes For AMIE - 5

Causes for eco-imbalance

Eco-Friendly Packaging & Eco-Mark on packages


Of late, when we see Plastic bags floating around and uncleared garbage containing beverage cartons of fruit juice, flavoured milk and used cushioning materials like thermocole, one wonders whether packaging materials are causing eco-imbalance by way of draining natural resources and causing pollution. The question arises whether is it due to the packaging materials alone or a failure of our system of clearing garbage and its disposal. Also one gets a feeling that we are over packing.

The estimate of packaging waste varies from country to country and it could be from 1% to 8% of the garbage. As such let us examine the role of packaging in our day to day life. Basically the function of packaging is for distribution and it has to protect, preserve and promote the product (3 P’s). In the case of consumer products it acts as a silent salesman and marketing tool. In particular, the wastages in perishable products vary from 5% in developed countries where adequate packaging is adopted to 25 to 30% in countries where it is inadequately packed.

As such, packaging is vital to reduce wastage, increase shelf life and cater to the market in distant places where it is not produced or manufactured. It meets the demands of society which calls for more consumer products to enhance the quality of life. In addition the packaging environment has changed due to the current marketing trends like self service and vending machines. Consequently packaging has to play the role of a silent salesman.

It has to perform the functions of creating brand image, identify quantity, usage, expiry date, etc. It should also be easily openable and disposable. The increased demand of packaged products has resulted in increased packaging waste and consequent disposable problems and effects on pollution. The enhanced consumption of packaging materials has resulted in depletion of natural resources, higher energy consumption and pollution of water and air. As such, there is a need for eco-friendly packaging.

Today in every walk of life we talk in terms of Eco-friendly and Eco-labeling.
The earlier conference in Brazil on environment has highlighted the dwindling natural resources, pollution, acid rain etc. Subsequently, the Montreal Protocol had highlighted the effects on Ozone Layer by the use of chlorofluro carbons.

In view of the growing menace of Packaging Waste, Germany, in 1991, issued an ordinance on the ‘avoidance of Packaging Waste’, which will be a trail blazer for other E.E. Countries.

With awareness of the community to changed circumstances, the use of Eco-labelled packages is bound to have an effect on the buying habits and as such the filler of the material or manufacturer should Eco-label their package which will help to reduce, recycle, reuse or recover the packaging waste.

Earlier not much thought was given on disposal of plastic material since it was mainly used for land filling. Subsequently it was noticed that over long periods of time the plastics remain as such in the landfill and it was not bio-degradable.

As a first step, considerable work was carried out by Scientists to develop bio-degradable plastic. Though it has been successfully developed, at the moment it is uneconomical. As such, more attention was given to make use